Alsatians

ETHNONYMS: none

Alsatians are the German-speaking people of the French region of Alsace,
located between the Vosges Mountains and the German border in the
departments of Bas-Rhin and Haut-Rhin. There are perhaps 1.5 million
speakers of German dialects in this region. There is no single Alsatian
dialectal variant, although High German is used as the written standard.
Today, most Alsatians are bilingual, French as the official language
having grown rapidly in the region since the 1940s.

The region was historically and culturally long part of the
Rhineland—throughout the Roman era and that of the Holy Roman
Empire. In the ninth and tenth centuries it was part of Lotharingia, and
later of the duchy of Swabia. In the mid-1600s it was ceded to France at
the end of the Thirty Years' War. In 1791 the whole region became
part of France, only to be ceded once again to Germany eighty years later
at the end of the Franco-German War. Although it changed political hands
often between France and Germany, its cultural affiliation never wavered
from a Germanic focus, there being little effort on the part of the French
government to disrupt traditional and linguistic practice in the region
(except in religious matters) until the late 1700s. This situation changed
dramatically with the French Revolution, during which a decree was issued
that all citizens unable to speak French were to be shot or deported to
the interior. Still, supporters of the retention of an Alsatian identity,
including a linguistic identity, remained—among them the Catholic
church. It was not until the 1850s that French became the official
language of primary instruction, and German never ceased being the
Language of the people at home, for worship, and in day-to-day affairs.
Severe upheavals began in the mid-to late 1800s, as Alsace became the
focus of territorial dispute between France and Germany, and the region
changed political hands four times more. However much Alsatians resisted
cultural and linguistic assimilation into France, they equally resisted
Germanization during their periods under Teutonic control. The
"Alsatian predicament" was a difficult one by this period.
While political and territorial disputes raged over their heads, the
people maintained that their traditional loyalty belonged to the region,
rather than the region's rulers. In this century, the tensions
between the two elements of Alsatian culture heightened, and Alsatian
society was torn—as a war memorial in Strasbourg, depicting a woman
grieving for her two fallen brothers, profoundly expresses. The male
figures of the statue are represented as having fought, and died, on
opposing sides. After World War I, when control of the region reverted to
the French, a period of repression of Germanic culture ensued, giving rise
to strong regionalist movements that coalesced in the formation of
political parties seeking Regional autonomy, even separation and
self-rule. Through the late 1920s and early 1930s, these movements reached
their height, but with the rise of Hitler's Nazi party, attention
again turned to the region's vulnerability to invasion and
conquest. Alsace was one of Germany's earliest French conquests
during World War II, and it has been said that the imposition of Nazi rule
did more to further French loyalty than any French
administrative or political action could ever have done. Although some
local leaders collaborated with the occupiers, the region's general
population participated heavily in the Resistance. In 1945, in reaction to
the brutality of the German occupation, the people of Alsace turned away
from autonomist movements for a time. Even the teaching of German in the
schools was legally suspended for nearly a decade, so that while the
language remained current in spoken form, literacy in German fell to about
20 percent. In the 1970s, a new movement toward reviving the Germanic
aspects of Alsatian tradition arose, as did a nascent autonomist
movement—the latter inspired largely as reaction against the
centralism of the French state.

Although its lands are fertile, and the region's iron and coal
mines have long constituted a source of wealth, Alsace's long
history of political insecurity and the devastation wrought by the two
world wars have impoverished the region. Its heavy industry, which is
based on iron and textiles, consists primarily of small enterprises that
are not fully competitive with their more highly developed counterparts in
Switzerland, Germany, and the Netherlands. The new autonomist movements
seek to turn this situation around by gaining greater control over
economic and social development policy.

Paralleling this desire to increase the regional voice in economic
decision making has been a resurgence of interest in promoting the
region's linguistic heritage and establishing a recognized body
charged with the preservation and development of Alsatian culture.
Although the issues of separatism that arose in the prewar years do not
form a part of the new movement, the French government has been less than
supportive to date, holding that the "unitary state" of
France depends upon assimilation.

User Contributions:

It was very interesting reading. My great grand mother was born in Alsace Lorain, her name was
Anna Von Kurtz. She was a school teacher who met her husband (from Heidelberg) in the late 1800's
They emigrated in 1890 to the U.S. . I heard many interesting stories and have many Beutiful pictures of the area.
Thank you,
L.A. Young

I HAVE ENJOYED READING ABOUT THE MINING IN FRANCE. I AM TRYING TO FIND OUT WHERE MY GRANDFATHER WAS BORN. HIS FATHER WAS A COAL MINER IN FRANCE, CAME TO USA IN 1890 WITH HIS WIFE AND THREE CHILDREN. MY UNDERSTAND THERE WERE 6 CHILDREN, 3 HAD DIED. I AM TRYING TO PLAN A TRIP TO FRANCE AND WITH HOPES TO LOCATE WHERE THEY LIVED AND MAYBE THE CHILDREN GRAVES. MY GREAT GRAND MOTHER SPOKE ANOTHER LANGUAGE. HER GRAND CHILDREN ALWAYS THOUGHT SHE WAS ITALIAN. THIS ARTICLE TELLS ME THAT MAY NOT BE CORRECT.

My ancestors Michael and Elizabeth Vetsch were born in Alsace, France. I was always confused because I was told my family was German yet they were from France. So this makes sense. However in 1793 Germany managed to occupy it again and when the French drove them out some fled with the German armies back to Germany the rest were mostly executed by the French. Around this time Russia had proposed a plan to settle the vast planes area (The Steppe) next to the Black Sea. They invited the farmers left in Alsace with the promise of free land, transportation, no taxes, religious freedom, exemption from military service and many other incentives. Thousands of Alsations migrated within a few years. This was another point on which I was confused. I was told my family was from France yet were German then most moved to Russia. I thought I was simply French, German and Russian a typical American mutt. My family prospered in Russia under the rule of the Zars. My ancestor was in fact the mayor of Selz. Then a land shortage came about and the younger Vetches emigrated to America for new opportunities. Sadly the rest of my ancestors who stayed were devastated by World War One and then Bolshevic revolution. The women were shipped off to Siberia as slaves and the men were lined up and machine gunned down. Four of my ancestors died in the 87 men slaughter, Rochus, Anton, Ferdinand, and Eugenius Vetsche. If not for the younger generation emigrating to America I may have never existed. It saddens me that my people had such a bloody history and continually used as pawns but I am happy some of us survived and we prosper.

The article regarding the Alsace region is very interesting. My distant relatives Johannes (Jean) Georgius Fuchs b abt 1662 in Sankt Blesein and his wife Catherina Fuchs (born Magelin or Meglin) had several children born in Soultz-Haut-Rhin, Alsace. We have never been able to trace the father/mother or earlier relatives of Johannes (Jean) Georgius Fuchs or Catherina. If anyone has information on this branch of the Fuchs family I would very much appreciate hearing from you.
Thank you, LKFuchs0935@yahoo.com

German dialects are not rare today. Big cities are mainly French, but most children in the country speak Alsatian which is an Alemannic language similar to that spoken in Switzerland.
The French like to think everyone loves them and are 'fiercely loyal' to them, but it's true only in their own minds.

My great-grandfather was born in Alsace and came to America in 1880 with his family. My grand-pere's name was Masson, while the maiden name of my great-grandmother was Meyer. I think this bolsters the idea of mixed nationalities coexisting in the region. Our family history relates that my grandfather left Alsace because he refused to serve in the German army.

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